Google Project Fi – 5 Secrets You Must Know Before Making the Switch

Google’s Project Fi has remained synonymous with the Google Nexus 6P, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6 and the general Nexus family.

In case you haven’t heard of it, Project Fi is simply another wireless carrier that adds up to the likes of Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, and T-Mobile. While these platforms are the most widespread in the U.S., some are costly and others can be a problem when it comes to reliability. If none of these four suits you, there are many others such as StraightTalk and Cricket Wireless, for instance, that piggy-back off other carriers’ services in a bid to offer users with more affordable plans.

Google’s Project Fi is part of the latter group that piggy-back off of other services. It was once an invite-only service, but it has now been made available to all users of Nexus devices in the country and other parts of the globe. The service works off the services of T-Mobile, Sprint and U.S. Cellular, choosing from the three which has the best connection at any given moment. The plans at Google Project Fi start at an amazing $20, giving you access to unlimited talk time and text messaging, with each GB of data costing just $10.

Well, as amazing as this may sound, not everyone is a fan of Google’s Project Fi. So, before you make any steps towards jumping onto the Fi bandwagon, here are 5 secrets you need to know about the service.

You get the best data pricing and usage info

One thing that makes Project Fi one of the best, if not the best platforms, is that it gives out the most straightforward pricing and usage details about data. You get to choose the amount of data you think is enough for you in a given month, however, Fi will only charge you for the exact amount of data used. IN case you exceed your set monthly usage, Project Fi will bill you for the additional data used. In case of using less than the chosen amount, there is some money for you to get back.

Since there is a Project Fi app, it makes it easier to track down how you use data, including alerting you of the next time your bill is due, the amount of data used compared to your monthly allocation as well as your daily usage.

The best customer service

When you make a call to most customer service lines, the most probable thing is that you will be greeted with a robot sound on the other end. As for Project Fi, you will have a real person at your service in under 5 minutes, which is something every user will welcome.

A great choice for frequent international travelers

As mentioned above, Project Fi is now available in more than 135 countries across the globe. The service is able to choose from any open Wi-Fi networks around you and in the process let you place calls over these wireless connections as long as you are in any of the covered regions. It is also possible to make calls using cellular data for 20 cents per minute, but texts remain free.

Data-saving Wi-Fi Assistant

Google’s Project Fi comes with a feature known as Wi-Fi Assistant. With this feature, the platform is able to scan through available open Wi-Fi networks and connect your device to the strongest possible. In this way, you will save a lot of your data since you will be using the free hotspots instead.

Even though the Wi-Fi Assistant feature was recently availed to all other non-Fi Nexus devices, it still remains a core part of the entire Project Fi.

It’s only compatible with Google Nexus devices

Despite all the goodies that pack inside Google’s Project Fi, the platform is limited to those who own and use Google Nexus devices. These include the Google Nexus 6P, Nexus 5X as well as the Nexus 6. The platform has been expanding slowly to other parts of the world, and now it covers up to 135 different countries. But this limited nature is hindering its growth in most regions that it is currently available.

If anything, this is the major downside of Project Fi. However, you may want to reconsider the service if you are a heavy data user.

17 thoughts on “Google Project Fi – 5 Secrets You Must Know Before Making the Switch”

The Best Customer Service? I have been a customer for about 9 months. It may be true that their customer service answers the phone fairly quickly, but their first line answering the phones needs more Project Fi training. I have had to go to more in depth in customer service which in my humble opinion isn’t great either.
To be the best you have to be the best. Project Fi customer service on a scale of 1 to 10 is a 3 in my humble opinion.

Agree. First line is poor. It’s there simply to calm you down. Little better than dealing with the machine but almost as efficient. Had a problem, my phone was giving me the spinning wheel at the beginning of each call, saying that it is logging in to wi-fi account even when the wifi was off. Fond an answer online, had to reinstall the Hangouts, the support was no help at all.

Fi also gives you up to 9 additional data only sims that are great for sharing your account with family and friends that you can put in any devices you want. It saves me a lot of money when I travel with my family. You can use a Google voice number and Hangouts for talking and texting.

I have been a Fi customer since the Nexus 6P was offered for sale, and my experience with Fi is that it is much more of a system than a wireless carrier. I never know if I’m on WiFi, Sprint, T-mobile, or US Cellular. The phone automatically switches to the best alternative, and it can use WiFi for EVERYTHING that the traditional wireless carriers offer — voice, texting, data. So, I found that my data usage over traditional wireless carriers went down dramatically without my knowledge, making Fi much more cost effective than it initially appears.

A couple of other things to consider: I ported an AT&T landline and it took 25 days, that was with me very actively riding both Google and AT&T for results . . . probably about 8 hours of me on the phone to both carriers to get it resolved. On my first overseas trip, inbound calls worked on WiFi only, never on cellular signals. I queried tech support and they admitted this happened somethings, gave a credit but lead me to expect this in the future. Lots of little nagging problems; when making an outgoing call I get no “ring-tone”. The call goes through but I get no “ringing” feedback . . . tech support at a loss here. For about a week, every call from Fi tech support was dropped by my Nexus 5X. I would get one ring and then it dropped, had to communicate via email. Call quality varies, often there is a serious lag time between talking and receiving, occasionally there is poor quality . . . never had these problems on Google Voice using the same WiFi network. On a plus note: almost all soliciting calls are filtered out via the Fi network. LTE data speed is now available in foreign countries.

We have Nexus 6 phones and signed up for Project fi. Project fi is not only great in the US. It was fantastic in Europe while we were on vacation. It was also fantastic to have in Haiti were we assist in a medical mission. I was able to make and receive calls without purchasing a local phone. It is a great value, too.

For what it is worth, I have had Google Fi for about 6 months and have been very happy with the customer service and the wireless service. It works great in Mexico (which I visit often for business and recreation). The WiFi is tremendous. My bill is usually less than $25. Just once did it reach $27.

I have been using protect Fi for nearly 8 months now. I have spend most of my time in Kuwait and Iraq. I have been extremely pleased with Fi and even moved my wife over to Fi as well. In Kuwait I always had service, was in constant text communication with my wife which has made this deployment far more acceptable for her. I have been using the local carriers to get less expensive data and sharing it from a wifi hotspot. It has been great being able to use wifi as well. Customer service has been top notch, much better than any other carrier i have used. Responsive and very conversational, not all stuffy like all the other carriers.

I was having problems with my project fi connecting to T-Mobile cellular towers and I was on the phone with their customer service many times. And I never had a problem with their customer service they are exceptional, courteous, kind and polite. again, I have been on the phone with their customer service at least up to 10 times and not once have I ever been treated rudely.

I have two Proj Fi phones and no complaints. EXCEPT: inability to forward calls from one PF phone number to another PF phone number. After much time spent with PF customer service, I was advised to forward PF calls to a phone with a different carrier. Thus my third PF phone became an ATT line, which works perfectly with my Nexus 5X. The $40 ATT prepaid line roughly matches the cost of my two PF lines.

I have used Google Voice for many years, at least 6, and I have loved it thoroughly. I started using Project Fi about 2 months ago and love it so far;. I’m getting used to the changes in service between these Google products. I loved my Nexus 6 and am broken hearted that on my birthday of all days, just two weeks ago, I dropped my Nexus flat on its screen in my friend’s shop which has a slick and polished concrete floor. My screen hasn’t come on since being plagued with the multiple cracks it developed after being dropped while charging. I had a phone case made especially for my Nexus 6, but it still received the damage!! I’m trying to get a replacement as soon as possible, and can hardly wait!! Project Fi & the Nexus devices have been a dream come true & I believe the concept will catch on like wildfire when more of the public is aware of it. Once more people give it a try, they’ll love it just as much as the current users do!!!